A strange set of circumstances this last few days.

A local group I've spoken to a couple of times asked if I could possibly fill a vacant speaker engagement at short notice, as the Speaker Secretary had been unable to contact the previously booked speaker.

I agreed but much to my surprise, the morning before the scheduled talk, I received another 'phone call saying the original speaker had made belated contact and was ready to go.

We agreed to let the original booking stand and I withdrew, or so I thought!

Another 'phone call on the evening of the event, this time in full-on panic mode. The speaker had arrived but had no screen, and this particular venue does not have a suitable blank wall for projection onto - please, please could they borrow my screen?

Of course I agreed but it made me wonder just how some speakers get away with it. You only have to trawl through Speakernet to see how many speakers expect the venue to provide a screen, and sometimes a projector as well. Some speakers turn up with their presentations just on a memory stick and expect the venue to provide the whole gamut of equipment necessary for the talk.

Personally I think this a cop out, if you profess to being a professional speaker then you should arrive at the venue  prepared with all that is required to make your talk a success.